/I 


7 


[ssui  il  June  30,    1000 


U.  S.  DEPARTMENT  OF  AGRICULTURE, 

BUREAl     OF  PLANT  [NDUSTRY     Circular  No.  30. 
B.    I     GALLOW  KY,  Chief 


I.MIMiOYI-.MI-.XT  OF  THE  OAT  CROP. 


C.  W.  WARBURTON, 
Agronomist  i\  Charge  of  Oat  [investigations. 


ST'ilo     <  'ir.  ::ii     09 


WASHINGTON    :  QOVEHNMEST    PNlNTlNQ  OFFICE    I 


nfoilMENTS  PEP 


U.S.  DEPOSITORY 


BUREAU  OF  PLANT  INDUSTRY. 


Chief  »f  Bureau,  Bbverls  T.  Galloway. 
Issistant   I'li'h  j  uj   Hunan.   ALBERT   F.   Woods. 
Editor,  J.   10.   Rockwell. 
Chief   Clerk,  James   K.   Jones. 
[Civ.  30] 

2 


I:     I-     I 


IMPROVEMENT  OF  THE  OAT  CROP." 


NEED    FOR   IMPROVEMENT. 

Nearly  32,000,000  acres  wen-  devoted  i«>  the  production  of  oats  in 
the  United  States  in  L907.  This  was  the  largesl  acreage  reported  up 
to  that  time,  l>nt  the  acre  yield  was  the  lowest  since  ls'.»:i  and  among 
the  lowest  recorded  by  the  Bureau  of  Statistics  of  the  United  States 
Department  of  Agriculture.  The  quality  in  the  principal  oat-pro- 
ducing sections  was  also  very  poor.  The  acreage  in  1908  was  i 
proximately  the  same  as  thai  of  the  previous  year,  and  though  the 
crop  was  slightly  larger  than  in  L907,  yet  it  was  far  below  the  average 
of  the  previous  ten  years.  When  the  average  yield  of  oats  for  the 
United  Stale-  is  as  low  as  25  bushels  to  the  acre,  as  it  has  been  in  the 
past  two  years,  it  is  evident  thai  improved  varieties  and  better 
methods  of  growing  and  handling  the  crop  are  much  needed.  Only 
the  improvement  of  the  crop  as  effected  through  the  seed  will  l>e  dis- 

•  d    here. 

II  e  low  yield  and  poor  quality  of  the  cal  crop  over  a  large  portion  of  the 
Tinted  States  in  1907  and  1908  leave  no  doubt  of  the  need  for  the  improvement 
of  iliis  cereal.  Much  attention  has  been  given  to  the  selection  and  improvement 
of  com  in  the  last  ten  years;  agricultural  papers  Lave  been  filled  with  sugges- 
tions Hi'  methods  and  details  of  results;  numerous  bulletins  on  the  subject  have 

been    published    by    the    agricultural    experi nl    stations;    fanners'    institute 

lectures  have  bejen  devoted  to  it  :  and  in  many  States  "seed-corn  trains"  have 
run  "ii  prominent  railroad  lines.     Strangely  enough,  with  all  this  enthu- 
siasm ami  the  actual  improvement  of  the  '-urn  crop  which  lias  resulted,  farmers 
nave  given  little  attention  t<>  the  breeding  of  other  cereals.     Recentlj   there  lias 

l u  some  genera]  discussion  as  to  methods  of  improving  them,  but  the  subject 

is  still  one  which  is  little  understood  by  farmers,  and  for  thai  reason  thepri 
paper  lias  been  prepared. 

The  method  of  improvement  by  individual  plant  selections  recommended  by 
the  author  lias  i  een  used  with  much  sm-res-  bj  European  and  American  small- 
grain  breeders  for  years,  and  as  here  outlined  is  now  used  bj  a  number  of  ex- 
periment stations  as  well  as  on  the  experimental  farms  of  the  Office  of  Grain 
Investigations  of  this  Bureau. —  B.  T.  Galloway,  Physiologist  and  Pathologist, 
tinil  Chief  of  Bureau. 

[Clr.  30] 

:: 


4  IMPROVEMENT    OF    THE    OAT    CROP. 

LINES  ALONG  WHICH  IMPROVEMENT  CAN  BE  EFFECTED. 

The  prominent  lines  along  which  the  oat  crop  can  be  improved 
are  the  yield,  ratio  of  kernel  to  hull,  and  weight  per  bushel.  Inci- 
dentally, selection  may  be  made  for  strength  of  straw,  resistance  to 
disease,  and  earliness,  though  all  these  points  usually  contribute  to 
the  increase  in  yield.  For  cereal  manufacture  a  high  ratio  of  kernel 
to  hull  is  desirable,  and  this  may  be  made  the  basis  of  selection. 
Generally  speaking,  selection  will  be  made  for  increased  yield,  with 
incidental  reference  to  lodging  and  disease  resistance,  and  to  time 
of  maturity. 

METHODS    OF    IMPROVEMENT. 

Several  methods  of  attaining  the  desired  end  in  the  improvement 
of  any  small-grain  crop  may  be  suggested.  These  are:  Mechanical 
selection:  introduction  of  new  seed;  use  of  the  seed  plat;  individual 
plant  or  head  selection,  and  hybridization. 

aj  e<  ;hanical  sele<  ition. 

Much  has  been  said  and  written  about  the  use  of  the  fanning  mill 
and  other  means  of  seed  separation  by  gravity  or  wind  power  for 
the  improvement  of  seed  oats.  Actual  field  tests  carefully  con- 
ducted by  several  experiment  stations  indicate  that  little  permanent 
improvement  of  the  variety  results  from  these  methods  of  selection. 
If  the  seed  is  carefully  cleaned  each  year,  however,  the  work  wili  he 
fully  justified  by  the  removal  of  weed  seed  and  the  small  shriveled 
grain,  which,  if  it  grew  at  all.  would  probably  produce  wqak  and 
unproductive  plants.  The  ordinary  field  crop  of  oats  is  a  mixture 
of  several  varieties,  some  of  which  are  necessarily  inferior.  Me- 
chanical selection  can  not,  of  course,  purify  the  strain  by  the  removal 
of  these  mixtures,  which  are  often  the  cause  of  unsatisfactory  re- 
turns.    This  can  lie  accomplished  only  by  hand  selection. 

INTRODUCTION    of    NEW    SEED. 

The  introduction  of  new  seed  includes  importations  from  foreign 
countries  and  transfer  from  one  locality  to  another  within  the 
United  States.  Many  of  our  best  varieties  have  been  introduce'! 
from  foreign  countries:  indeed,  it  is  probably  true  that  more  good 
varieties  of  oats  have  been  introduced  from  abroad,  especially  from 
Europe,  than  of  any  other  cereal.  This  is  largely  due.  however,  to 
the  fact  that  little  attention  has  been  given  to  the  production  of  new 
varieties  of  oats  in  the  United  States.  Notable  among  the  introduc- 
tions n\'  recent  years  have  been  Swedish  Select  and  Sixty-Day.  intro- 
duced by  the  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture,  and  Kher- 

.  30] 


I  \1  PRI  <\  I   \l  I  N  I     "I      >\  I     CR(  IP.  5 

son,  introduced  by  the  Nebraska   Agricultural    Experiment    Stal 

While  much  bas  been  done  in  this  line  in  the  past,  we  can  not  depend 
entirely  on  this  source  for  the  future,  as  we  have  practically  ex- 
hausted the  List  of  existing  varieties  in  Europe,  and  highly  special 
ized  varieties  bred  there  are  unlikely  to  succeed  over  any  large  area 
of  the  United  States.  The  selection  and  improvement  of  those 
varieties  already  introduced  which  have  proved  of  value  can  best  be 
carried  on  in  our  own  country  in  the  sections  to  which  they  are 
adapted. 

Little  permanent  improvement  can  be  secured  by  the  exchange  of 

s I  from  one  locality  to  another.     A  variety  which  does  well  in  one 

State  or  section  will  not  necessarily  succeed  in  another,  even  though 
conditions  arc  apparently  similar,  whereas  the  general  tendency  is 
to  make  these  transfers  between  localities  with  greatly  varying  con- 
ditions n!'  soil  and  climate.  The  transfer  of  plump,  heavy  grain 
grown  ninler  irrigation  in  Montana  can  hardly  be  attended  with 
success  when  the  succeeding  crop  is  grown  under  the  very  differenl 
conditions  of  Iowa  or  [llinois.  Experiments  now  being  made  by  the 
Office  of  Grain  Investigations  of  this  Bureau  indicate  thai  home- 
grown seed  of  a  given  variety  will  in  general  outyield  that  from  a 
distance,  even  where  the  original  stock  is  the  same.  At  Amarillo. 
Tex.,  home-grown  seed  of  Burl  oats  yielded  practically  twice  a< 
much  as  an  adjoining  plal  of  the  same  variety  from  seed  which  had 
been  mown  in  central  Kansas  for  two  years,  though  both  lots  were 
grown  from  the  same  original  stock.  Where  improved  high  yielding 
varieties  can  be  secured  from  near-by  growers,  their  purchase  to 
replace  common  or  inferior  -lock  is  to  be  recommended,  but  it  is 
not  advisable  to  secure  seed  oats  from  a  section  in  which  the  condi- 
tions are  widely  different  from  those  under  which  the  crop  is  to  be 
grow  n. 

I  SE  OF   THE   SEED    PL  \  I  . 

A  practical  method  of  improving  the  oat  crop,  though  one  which 
involves  some  time  and  expense,  is  the  use  of  the  small  seed  plat. 
This  requires  the  selection  of  a  considerable  quantity  of  good  heads 
from  the  field  after  the  grain  matures,  and  just  before  it  is  harvested. 
Care  should  be  exercised  in  selecting  the  heads,  >o  as  to  get  them  as 
nearly  a-  possible  of  one  type.     Only   plant-  which  show    superior 

qualities  under  ordinary  c litions  should  be  -elected.     Those  which 

stand  alone,  near  the  edge  of  the  field,  or  which  are  otherwise 
especially  favored,  should  be  rejected.  The  heads  selected  should 
be  thrashed  by  hand  and  the  grain  secured  should  be  -own  on  a  plat 
of  well  prepared  land  the  following  spring.  The  crop  should  be 
harvested  and  thrashed  separately    from  the  main  crop.     At  thrash- 

[Clr. 


6  IMPROVEMENT    OE    THE   OAT    CROP. 

ing,  the  firs!  portion  to  go  through  the  machine  should  be  rejected, 
as  it  is  likely  to  contain  a  mixture  of  other  grain.  The  grain  from 
the  seed  plat  should  be  used  the  succeeding  year  for  sowing  the 
general  crop,  or  such  portion  of  it  as  the  quantity  of  seed  secured 
makes  possible. 

To  effect  permanent  improvement,  the  best  heads  should  be  selected 
from  the  seed  plat  at  each  harvest  to  plant  the  seed  plat  of  the  next 
year.  The  quantity  selected  will,  of  course,  vary  with  the  size  of 
the  seed  plat  desired.  If  possible  this  should  be  large  enough  to 
furnish  seed  for  the  general  crop  of  the  following  year.  "Where 
the  acreage  is  considerable,  another  year  is  required  for  the  transfi  i 
from  the  seed  plat  to  the  general  crop.  For  instance,  enough  heads 
are  selected  the  first  season  to  make  one  bushel  of  seed.  This  is 
sown  on  a  half  acre  and  produces  25  bushels.  '  The  25  bushels  will 
sow  10  to  12  acres  the  following  year,  which  should  produce  enough 
to  sow  several  hundred  acres  the  succeeding  year.  The  length  of 
time  from  seed  plat  to  general  crop  will,  of  course,  depend  on  the 
ratio  of  size  of  the  small  plat  to  the  acreage  of  the  general  crop. 

The  term  "  seed  plat  "  is  sometimes  used  to  designate  the  plat  or 
small  field  in  which  new  or  desirable  varieties  are  increased  until 
sufficient  seed  is  secured  for  the  field  crop.  Thus,  if  a  seed  grower 
or  dealer  or  an  experiment  station  in  the  vicinity  has  a  good  -train 
which  the  farmer  wishes  to  try,  it  can  be  sown  in  this  trial  or  seed 
plat,  and  if  it  proves  better  under  his  conditions  than  his  genera] 
crop  it  can  be  increased  sufficiently  in  a  year  or  two  to  take  the  place 
of  the  old  variety  in  the  field.  The  use  of  the  seed  plat  in  this  wax- 
is  often  advisable,  as  it  offers  an  opportunity  to  test  the  new  variety 
on  a  small  scale  without  risking  the  entire  crop.  Frequently,  too. 
seed  of  new  varieties  can  not  be  secured  in  sufficienl  quantity,  or  is 
too  high  in  price,  for  the  sowing  of  large  fields,  and  an  increase  plat 
is  thus  made  a  necessity. 

INDIVID!  AL   PLANT   SELECTION. 

The  most  reliable  and.  al  the  same  time,  the  slowesl  means  of 
improvement  i-  by  the  selection  of  individual  plants  and  the  estab- 
lishmenl  of  pedigreed  strains.  Individual  heads  should  be  selected 
from  the  field  crop  as  for  the  seed  plat.  hut.  instead  of  hulking  the 
seed  when  thrashed,  the  seed  from  the  several  head-  should  he  planted 
in  separate  rows.  An  excellent  method  of  testing  these  selections  has 
been    described    by    Mr.    d.    B.    Norton,"    formerly    in   charge   of   the 

"American  Breeders'  Association,  vol.  •">.  pp.  280-285.     This  plan   is  outlined 
rather  e  in  detail  by  II.  J.  Webber  in  Cornell  University  Agricultural   Ex- 
periment  Station  Bulletin  251,  pp.  318^-319. 
[Cir.  30] 


!.\l  l'l;«>\  EMKNT  01      CHE  OA1    CROP 


GUARD_ROW  _ 


_,  GUARD    ROW 
CHECK     ROW 


-£. 


oat  breeding  work  of  1 1 1 i -   Bureau;  a   brief  outline  of  this   [)lan   is 
given  below. 

The  seed  from  the  individual  heads  is  planted  the  firs!  year  in  rows 
.">  feci  long  and  I   foot  apart,     [fa  considerable  number  of  rows  are 

planted,  ii   will  be  found  convenient     

if  run  them   in   three  series,  with  a     — 
narrow  -pace  between  the  series,  as 
shown  in  the  diagram    I  fig.    L).     If 
weeds  are  numerous,  one  or  two  hoe-     — 
ings  may  be  necessary.     At  harve  i 
time   the    plal    should    be   gone   over 
carefully,  and  those  rows  which  ap-    ~ 
pear  to  be  low  in  yield,  or  are  par-     — 
ticularly  subject   to  lodging,  disease, 
or  undesirable  qualities  of  any  kind. 
should  be  discarded.     Those  of  out- 
standing value  should   be  harvested 
and  thrashed  separately, and  retained     — 
for  further  test  in";.  _ 

The  next  year  the  seed  from  these 
rows  should  be  planted  in  rows  17 
feel  long  and  1  foot  apart,  planting 
everj  tenth  row  of  a  standard  variety  — 
or  of  the  bulk  seed  from  \\  hich  the 
original    selections    were    made,    for     — 


.CHECK    ROW 


tCHECK     ROW 


.1 


CHECK    ROW 


,  GUARD    ROW 
^  GUARD    ROW 


W/r* 


-I Ft*. 


5Fr 


% 


comparison  and  for  the  detection  of 
soil  variations.  Each  of  the  shorl 
rows  of  the  preceding  year  should 
have  produced  enough  seed  for  two 
or  more  of  these  1 7-fool  row s.  'The 
~e\  eral  row  s  of  any  pan  icular  strain 
should  be  planted  in  di  fferent  pan  - 
of  the  plat  so  as  to  equalize  any 
variation  in  the  soil.  Their  location 
should  be  carefully  noted,  so  that 
they  may  be  compared  with  each 
other  and  the  seed  combined  after 
harvesting  and  weighing.  These  17- 
foot  rows  contain  approximately  one-sixteenth  of  a  square  v>»\.  or 
of  an  acre.  At  a  common  rate  of  seeding  in  sections  where 
are  an  important  crop,  23  bushels  to  the  acre,  one-half  ounce 
is  sufficient  for  one  of  these  17-foot  row-.  At  harvest  time  tin 
should  again  be  carefully  studied  and  only  the  most  promising  strains 
retained.  Each  row  should  then  be  harvested,  thrashed,  and  weigl  ed, 
and  the  weight  recorded. 
■ 


5ft  5Ft 

I  i>.  i  Diagram  showing  Hie  plan) 
Ing  plan  of  ><•<■. I  plal  for  the  Ira 
provemeni  of  <>ais  l ■>  individual 
plain    selection. 


8  IMPROVEMENT    OF    THE    OAT    CROP. 

The  test  the  third  year  is  along  similar  lines.  Two  or  more  17-foot 
rows  should  be  planted  of  each  of  the  strains  which  yet  remain,  and 
the  check  rows  should  be  used  as  before.  In  addition,  however,  plats 
should  be  planted  of  several  of  the  most  promising  strains,  so  that 
they  may  be  increased  as  rapidly  as  possible.  At  harvest  time  dis- 
cards should  be  made  as,  in  previous  years,  and  the  remaining  rows 
and  plats  should  again  be  harvested,  thrashed,  and  weighed.  The 
number  of  strains  should  now  be  considerably  reduced,  and  by  com- 
parison of  the  previous  records  with  those  of  this  year  and  the  dis- 
carding of  those  strains  which  do  not  show  up  well  a  further  reduc- 
tion can  be  made. 

The  fourth  year  the  few  remaining  strains  are  again  tested  as  be- 
fore, and  plats  of  considerable  size  should  be  planted  of  those  with 
the  best  records.  After  the  harvest  of  this  year,  all  should  be  dis- 
carded except  those  of  outstanding  excellence.  These  best  strains 
should  now  be  in  sufficient  quantity  for  field  tests,  and  if  of  real  value 
should  be  distributed  to  neighbors  and  tested  under  varying  con- 
ditions to  demonstrate  their  general  adaptability.  If  the  strain 
proves  its  excellence  over  a  considerable  area,  a  name  should  be  given 
it,  to  prevent  confusion  with  other  varieties. 

New  strains  selected  either  from  the  general  crop  or  from  the  row 
tests  may  of  course  be  introduced  at  any  time  by  starting  them  in  the 
5-foot  rows  and  adding  them  to  the  general  series  of  17-foot  rows  the 
following  year. 

The  diagram  (fig.  1)  shows,  in  the  upper  portion,  the  17-foot 
"  progeny  "  rows  for  comparison  of  strains,  with  the  two  "  guard  " 
rows  and  a  "check"  row  at  each  end  of  some  standard  variety,  and 
every  tenth  row  from  the  first  cheek  a  cheek  row.  The  lower  portion 
shows  these  17-foot  rows  divided  into  three  5-foot  rows  with  alleys 
1  foot  wide  for  the  planting  of  the  individual  selections.  It  is  from 
these  rows  that  the  strains  are  taken  in  succeeding  years  to  the 
progeny  rows. 

A  permanent  record  should  be  kept  of  the  different  strains.  This 
record  should  show  the  essential  facts  regarding  the  performance  of 
a  given  strain  from  the  time  the  original  selection  is  made.  For 
convenience,  each  selection  should  be  given  a  number,  and  the  num- 
ber should  be  retained  until  the  strain  is  discarded  or  given  a 
permanent  name  as  a  variety  worthy  of  distribution.  If  selections 
are  made  from  any  of  the  strains  they  should  retain  the  original 
number  anil  be  given  a  second  selection  number  as  well.  Thus,  if 
selections  are  made  from  strain  25  they  should  be  designated  as 
25-1,  25-2,  25-3,  etc.  If  several  varieties  are  used,  either  the  name 
of  the  variety  should  be  used  with  the  selection,  or  the  variety 
should  be  designated  by  a  number  which  precedes  the  selection  mim- 
ic Ir.  30] 


!  \l  PBi  »V1  Ml  \  I     OF    III  I.    "A  I     CRi  IP. 


9 


ber.  Thus,  we  may  have  Silvermine  1.  Silvermine  2,  etc.,  or  1-1, 
1  2,  etc.  In  tlii-  latter  case  the  first  figure  of  each  couple  designates 
the  numbei  of  the  variety,  and  the  second  figure  the  selections  of 
that  variety.  Selections  of  variety  No.  2  would  be  numbered  2  1. 
■_  2,  etc.  1  lie  sample  page  from  a  notebook  shown  as  Table  I.  which 
ran  be  made  by  ruling  vertical  columns  on  ruled  paper,  illustrates 
the  system  of  numbering  and  the  essential  notes  which  should  be 
taken  cadi  season  on  all  the  selections.  These  notes  should  lie  kept 
in  ;:  permanent  cover,  such  as  the  loose-leaf  binders  which  are  usually 
obtainable  at  stationery  stores. 


Tabli    [.     Record  of  mil  Helvetian*  far  inns. 


ni 

III  5 
115. 


MUM-    tc> 


number. 

Planted. 


519 
521 


52 


1!   .    ' 

lis. 
119 

I 


J  3 

4  3 

I    : 


[leaded    Ripened.     Rust. 


1  1 1 

•1    14 

1    11 

!    11 

(5  15 

6  12 

1    1  1 

1    1  1 

1 

.  cl. 
85 
85 


90 
80 


Lodg- 


98 

80 

Til 
90 


Shat- 
tering. 


.cl. 
100 

100 

UN) 

100 

I 

Kill 
95 


grain. 


Oz. 

14.5 

15 

13 

12 

14 

12 
15 

11 

II 
10.5 


V, 

No 

\  . 
No 

\,, 
\,, 

No. 


A.s  shown  in  the  above  table  the  rows  of  the  plat  arc  numbered 
consecutively,  with  every  tenth  row  a-  a  check.  Selection  111  and 
three  selections  from  it  were  planted.  1.  3,  and  5.  This  indicates 
that  selections  2  and  I.  and  selections  of  this  strain  bearing  higher 
numbers  than  .'>.  have  been  discarded  in  previous  years.  Of  strain 
L15  we  have  two  selections,  1  and  I.  and  a  reselection  of  I.  recorded 
as  1 L5 — J  1.  No  further  -election-  have  been  made  of  -t  rain-  1  Is  and 
119.     The  selections  which  have  the  numbers  L16  and  117  have  been 

discarded. 

All  dates  arc  recorded  by  figures  representing  the  month  and  day 
of  the  month.  Thus,  the  dale  of  planting  was  1  3,  or  April  (the 
fourth  month  i  3.  Resistance  to  rust  is  recorded  as  the  percentage  of 
freedom  from  this  disease.  Resistance  to  lodging  and  shattering  are 
entered  in  like  manner.  Selection  No.  Ill  1.  which  lodges  very 
little,  i-  marked  '.,v  percent  resistant,  while  111  :;.  in  which  there  is 
considerable  lodging,  is  given  only  v<>  per  cent.  The  yield  is  recorded 
as  ounces  of  thrashed  ^rain  to  the  row.  Quality  may  be  indicated 
by  the  market  grades  No.  2,  No.  3,  etc.,  or  b>   percentages. 


10  IMPROVEMENT    OF    THE    OAT    CROP. 

HYBRIDIZATION. 

Few  hybrid  varieties  of  oats  have  }ret  been  produced,  practically 
all  of  the  work  of  improvement  having  been  accomplished  by  selec- 
tion. Hybridization  of  the  small  grains  is  comparatively  difficult, 
and  the  problem  of  selection  so  complicated  that  the  farmer  is  hardly 
justified  in  attempting  to  hybridize.  F'or  the  present  at  least,  while 
there  is  so  much  to  be  accomplished  by  selection,  his  efforts  can  well 
be  confined  to  that  field,  leaving  the  hybrid  problem  to  the  professional 
breeder. 

VARIETIES. 

A  brief  list  of  the  varieties  which  are  most  likely  to  lend  themselves 
to  efforts  toward  their  improvement  folloAvs.  Many  others  might  be 
mentioned. 

For  fall  sowing  in  the  South :  Virginia  Gray  and  hardy  strains  of  Rustproof. 

For  spring  sowing  in  the  South:  Burt,  Rustproof. 

For  the  Central  States  (from  Pennsylvania  westward  to  Colorado):  Sixty- 
Day,  Kherson,  Silvermine,  Joannette,  Early  Champion.   Siberian. 

For  the  Northern  States  (including  the  intermountain  area  and  Pacific  North- 
west) :  Swedish  Select.  Early  Gothland,  American  Banner,  Lincoln.  Progress, 
Sixty-Day,  White  Russian,  Ligowo,  Big  Four. 

CONCLUSIONS. 

The  unsatisfactory  yield  and  quality  of  the  oat  crop  in  recent  years 
show  the  necessity  for  the  improvement  of  this  grain.  This  improve- 
ment may  be  along  the  lines  of  disease  resistance,  strength  of  straw, 
earliness,  quality,  or  yield,  or  several  of  these  may  be  combined.  In 
any  event,  yield  is  the  essential  basis  of  selection.  Mechanical  selec- 
tion and  the  introduction  of  seed  from  foreign  countries  or  from  sec- 
tions more  favorable  for  the  production  of  the  oat  crop  are  but  tem- 
porary makeshifts.  The  use  of  the  seed  plat  usually  gives  good 
results,  but  permanent  improvement  is  best  effected  by  pedigreed 
strains  produced  from  individual  plants.  A  large  number  of  these 
selections  should  be  made  and  tested,  (he  poorer  ones  discarded,  and 
the  very  best  increased  as  rapidly  as  possible.  Where  one  of  the 
pedigreed  strains  proves  of  exceptional  value  it  should  be  widely 
tested  and  eventually  named  and  introduced  as  a  new  variety.  At 
present  the  farmer  is  advised  to  leave  hybridization  of  the  small 
grains  to  the  professional  breeder. 

Approved : 

James  Wilson, 

Secretary  of  Agriculture. 

Washington,  D.  C,  April  ..'}.  1909. 

[Cir.  30] 

o 


UNIVERSITY  OF  FLORIDA 


3  1262  08928  9630 


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